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Leif Jade
Leif Jade was a player character from the Medieval roleplay, and features in several post-game roleplays and fics. He is a member of House Jade (by adoption rather than blood or marriage), as well as an antisocial, grumpy, nerdy falconer of a mage. Pre-Roleplay Leif was the sixth child born to the Accipiters, the ruling family of Raylier, Corvus. The Accipiters aimed for each of their children to take up a position of some honor or skill, the idea being that this would in turn reflect well on the family, and Leif was in line to be the family's priest. His quietness, even as a child, made him seem like he would be well-suited for a life serving the Woo. These plans remained in place even when Leif proved to have magical abilities, as one of Leif's older brothers was already the House's official mage, and none of the other Accipiter children had particularly powerful magic. This fact, as well as the financial and time burden involved, influenced the Accipiters not to have Leif undergo archmage testing. As Leif grew older, he was plagued more and more by a feeling of a mental pressure that made him oversensitive to outside stimuli - touch and sound especially. He was also extremely impaired in social situations, both by his oversensitivity and a lack of a natural ability to learn to read facial expressions and make small-talk. Leif's short temper didn't help interactions with his family any, and he very quickly became quite withdrawn and isolated from them, enjoying only magic, theology lessons and birds, both the ones he visited in the Accipiter aviary and the predatory birds he read about. At sixteen, Leif left Raylier for the city of Iscaria and Our Woo of Charity, a church well-known for its charity healing work, particularly the magical variety, to begin his seminarian training. Leif managed about a year of fairly normal study before the mental pressure suddenly grew much worse. Leif's oversensitivity became so strong that even normal levels of sensation had the potential to drive him into sensory overload, especially if other people were involved. He developed new symptoms as well, including difficulty keeping his thoughts straight and extreme discomfort with asymmetry. Smells also became more likely to overload him than they ever had previously. Living constantly on the edge of painful overload, Leif was profoundly unhappy with his life, but found comfort in sneaking to the church's mews, where, alogng with a flock of doves, they kept a huge white Veluzian Eagle named Lunari. Leif decided he wanted to try holding her on a glove like a falconer, and eventually worked up the nerve to do so - unfortunately, the heavy eagle was too much weight for an untrained teenager to comfortably hold, and when she was jarred, Lunari lashed out, slashing underneath Leif's left eye with her beak and quite deeply along his upper arm with her talons. Something about the combination of pain, shock, and fear triggered something in Leif's magic - in a display of bright, curling light and strange power, it broke through the blocks and healed Leif's arm and face, leaving behind wavy, tattoo-like marks. The destruction of the blocks also freed Leif from the pressure that had made him so oversensitive to stimuli and incapable of socializing all his life, though the oversensitivity was far from completely gone. Leif didn't entirely understand why things were so much better, just that it had to do with his magic bursting free of some sort of restraint - a fact made quite obvious by sudden and often dramatic bursts of uncontrolled magic that began to assuage Leif when he grew emotional. He continued his seminarian training for another year and a half, as best he could around these flares. When Leif was twenty, however, Lord Everett Jade came to the church asking to see the mage who had been casting uncontrolled magic. Everett finally had an explanation for what was going on - Leif was an archmage, whose powers had been repressed by a natural block. The pressure and energy his body needed to exert to keep the block in place against such strong magic had caused Leif's problems with oversensitivity and lack of ability to learn to socialize - but the magic had broken through the barrier anyway when Lunari had clawed him. Everett offered Leif training to help control and fully harness his abilities, if Leif would join House Jade and eventually become the House's Archmage. He also mentioned having a mews of raptors, and Leif agreed readily. After a brief but tumultuous reunion with his family to give them the news, Leif left for Solis to join House Jade and begin his training. Stories featuring Leif before his trip to Medieville include: Little Bird - Cateline Accipiter frustratedly escorts six-year-old Leif to the Accipiters' aviary-keeper in order to tend to a bird Leif found injured in the aviary - and discovers he's shown his first signs of magic. A Family of Faith - When Cateline Accipiter and her cousin Basil Cressida get together, everyone else is miserable, including nine-year-old Leif. A Broken Beak - Eleven-year-old Leif wakes up with the painful symptoms of a sinus infection. He doesn't take it well. Unholy - Leif tries to leave the grounds of Our Woo of Charity to test whether his extreme sensory pain is the result of him somehow being burned by church grounds. The city, however, is full of dangers for someone living on the verge of sensory overload. Canon Roleplay Leif had been living with the Jades for five years when he was told he would be accompanying the Jade party to King Starmey's funeral, and the ensuing events celebrating Princess Destiney's coronation - more to use his archmage abilities to protect the House than because of any diplomatic abilities. Leif brought along a black-shouldered kite named Ayleth for company, no doubt to the annoyance of the rest of the Jade party. Still very bitter, standoffish, and outright irritable, Leif was a little slow to make friends or good impressions in Medieville, and spent the first day being appalled by such antics as Garrick Stallion's funeral etiquette - though he was intrigued by the living stone gargoyle and stone birds who swarmed the funeral-goers afterward. The next day.blissfully unaware of his faction-mate Jeniver's disappearance, Leif went into town to have Ayleth's birdcage fixed and stumbled upon the King's Arms after a strange whirlwind (whose actual cause was Demongoat) destroyed much of the furniture. Here he met both the inn's owner, Ilsa Wright, and an adopted member of House Stallion, Kirin Mao. Leif and Kirin worked together to fix the Inn's broken furniture, Kirin figuring out how the pieces fit together adn Leif magically reattaching them. That night, Leif discovered that Jeniver had disappeared and been recovered - along with the person who had arrested her, the vigilante, King's Arms cook, and now newly-adopted Jade ward Xavier Lynn. They were also joined that night by Ruth Bjornflingr, a very powerful magician, and learned that the Stallions had recruited an alchemist. The next evening, Leif, the Jades, the dignitaries from all the major Houses of Kyth, and a lottery of peasants attended a feast held at Raven's Keep. While things started off well enough - including the Jades' recruitment of the messenger Kaldora - by the end of the night things devolved into chaos; a battle of posturing between the Jades' suitor Joffery and the Stallions' Garrick was interrupted by a stone chimney swift, which Leif pursued through the hallways. Eventually this led him to a closet where Kirin and Ilaria Braide were trapped, and while attempting to get them free, all of the characters in the room - including Kaldora, Jeniver, Lucinda Stallion, and the stone chimney swift, Stippling, were all pulled into and trapped in the closet as well. Fortunately, if embarassingly, they were soon rescued by Alain Stallion. After the feast, Leif accompanied the other Jades to an interrogation session with Elin Ryer, one of the Shadows, who had been arrested by Xavier earlier in the evening after he caught her spying on Leif. Noticing that Xavier was distraught and realizing he had been acting oddly all day, Leif eventually took Xavier aside to talk to him. To his horror, he found out that, though a series of poor word choices, Xavier thought he had been taken into House Jade as a slave - illegal in Kyth, but not in Courdon, where Xavier had escaped from. Leif quickly reassured Xavier that this wasn't the case, and resolved to look out for the vigilante and try to help him adjust to his new station. After a day spent trying to find Elin Ryer after she escaped, Leif went in search of Aldrich Finnegan, the man he'd been told was behind the living stautes. Leif was appropriately fascinated by the magic and the workmanship, though Aldrich and Leif eventually had a rather heavy and somewhat layered conversation. While searching for Elin again the next morning, Leif grew irritated with the Jades he had been paired with and stormed off on his own - eventually finding Kirin having a lone picnic in a relatively secluded spot. Finally forced to confront the fact that he found the Stallion both attractive and interesting, Leif eventually worked up the nerve to join him. The two proceeded to have a slightly awkward but overall pleasant conversation, neither of them quite picking up on the tells that the other was attracted to them. After spending the next day and night in a much worse mood - worrying over the theft of his spellbook and trying to learn more about murders he had learned about from Kirin, and low on sleep thanks to interruptions from a nightmare related to the Killing Curse he had learned a round or two previous - Leif was up around dawn when Ayleth came to Leif in what was clearly a panic. When Leif followed her into the city, she led him to Kirin, who had been left unconscious and injured in an alley following, unbeknownst to Leif, a torturous interrogation by Frederick Arcanus. Much to Leif's surprise, after he removed the effects of the spells and healed a lightning burn, the two had their first kiss. Unfortunately, happy times were not to last - a delegation of Courdonians arrived in Medieville, drawn there by what they thought was trickery and disrespect on the part of the Kythian royalty concerning one of the princes of Courdon. Among the new arrivals was Rodin Duval, Xavier's former master - who recognized his runaway slave and tried to reclaim him. Leif, Elin, Alain and Ambrose Stallion, and Frederick were able to thwart him, but it made the already furious Courdonians even angrier. The Courdonians continued to cause problems, including a thief attacking and nearly killing the locksmith Morgaine Braham, whom Leif had met briefly in a church a few days previous. Xavier, Jeniver, and and Ilaria Braide took down the assailant, and Leif was able to heal Morgaine's wounds with help from Kirin (and secretly, a little additional magic from Kaldora). He was not, unfortunately, able to save the sight in Morgaine's slashed eye. Despite - and in part because of - knowing the Courdonians were likely planning something, Leif attended the Coronation with the rest of his House. Sure enough, the Keep was attacked by Courdonians on gryphonback Separated from his Housemates while fighting a gryphon-riding mage, Leif eventually found Sieg Braham hanging from a cliff and about to be attacked by a gryphon; Leif drove the animal off long enough to lift the half-elven knight to saftey, and the two fought and killed the gryphon and knocked out its rider. The two stuck together to make their way into the Keep, where they eventually found Joffery. By the time this fight - and the ambush that came with it - were done, however, Sieg had taken a nasty headwound and Leif was on the fringes of his magic. The three retreated to triage, where, a short time later, Leif was found by another of House Jade's mages and told he needed to lead the rest of the House in the dragon-summoning spell - the dragon already on the field (again, Kaldora, unbeknownst to the Jades) was not focusing its attacks. Though he had very little magic left, Leif was able to use his memories of the courage of just about everyone he'd met and befriended in Medieville, and the determination to keep them safe, to push himself through casting the spell - which both summoned a new dragon and drew Kaldora off the battle field. Now completely pulled and on the verge of passing out, Leif still went in search of Kirin and Xavier, finding the former as well as learning that Destiney and King Malik of Courdon were dead, and that Aldrich had been revealed as King Starmey's older brother, kidnapped as a child. Leif and Kirin went back to triage, where Alain (who had more-or-less confirmed the two's relationship on his own) found them and subtly offered Kirin a position in Medieville - meaning that, so long as Leif could find a way to stay as well, the two wouldn't have to separate when their Houses returned to Bern and Corvus. Nine months later, Leif had indeed been allowed to stay in Medieville, and was still together with Kirin. Leif was also helping Elin learn to control her mirror magic, undoing the conditioning inflicted upon Xavier's magic by his Courdonian masters, and continuing to foster friendships with Morgaine and Sieg Braham. Leif ended the game as a slightly-less grumpy, slightly-less antisocial, still bird-obsessed, still-awkward nerdmage - but a much happier one. Post-Roleplay Leif has appeared in multiple post-game roleplays and side fics. They're listed here in chronological order. Tense Inquiries - The day after the Coronation, Xavier asks Leif to meet with Elin to discuss the later's strange, magic-related collapse during the previous day's battle, as well as touch on the future of their two factions, considering their very-recent enimity. Fic written by GLQ, Elycien, and Tiger. An Unexpected Visit - Leif is the subject of some discussion by his parents during the events leading up to the Coronation. A few days after the battle, Lord Basil Cressida checks in on Leif and his injuries and Leif is very confused. Fic written by Carrie and Tiger. Powerful Words - Late Summer 1314 - Leif and Ambrose Stallion discuss post-Coronation Medieville, religion, and magic on the steps of the Keep courtyard. Fic written by Celestial and Tiger. Raptors and Hounds - September 1314 - Ongoing roleplay between Birdy and Tiger. Bitter Reunion - July 17th, 1315 - Morgaine Braham's estranged daughter, Ophelia, returns to Medieville, but attempts to make peace are thwarted by Rosalie Dylas' jealousy. Leif appears in Part 2. Fic written by Shinko, Maddy, GLQ, Elycien, and Tiger. Snow on the Market - December 30th 1315 - Leif, stomping through a snowy Medieville in search of his owl Forthwind, is given a lesson in winter antics by Morgaine Braham. Roleplay between Shinko and Tiger Party Capital - April 1316 - A festival in Medieville goes awry when someone sells unlabelled, magically-spiked juice to the crowd, getting a sizable portion of the town completely drunk. Leif finds Morgaine near the bottom of a bottle, and the two of them - later joined by an also-drunk Elin Ryer - go in search of the juice-seller to stop them, battling drunken antics and the festival itself the whole way through. Roleplay between Shinko, Tiger, and GLQ. Birds of a Feather - June/July? 1316 - After seven years without contact, Leif's family comes to Medieville, claiming to want to reestablish family bonds, but in fact deadset on forcing Leif apart from his Stallion boyfriend. It's going to be a long week. Fic written by Tiger (with a collaboration with Shinko). Light On Your Feet - August? 1316 - Leif is brewing a potion but it seems to have a slight problem. Said problem becomes massive when Morgaine's cat, Mercury, falls into the potion, and proceeds to cause havoc as he hovers around Marson Manor. Ongoing roleplay by Shinko and Tiger. O Come All Ye Medieval - December 22nd, 1316 - A Woomas party hosted by Morgaine and Sieg at the King's Arms Inn on Caroling Day! Ongoing roleplay by Shinko, Celestial, Tiger, Killix, Liou, GLQ, PFA, and Kristykimmy. Flesh and Blood: Part One - Spring 1317 - Leif and his older brother Markus visit Sieg in Nid'aigle for vacation, snark, and bonding time between the two knights and the archmage.Seriously, there is so much snark. On day one of the trip, Leif nerds over the elven raptors while Markus and Sieg talk. Fic written by Shinko and Tiger. Flesh and Blood: Part Two - Leif and Sieg chat on the docks, only briefly interrupted by wolves trying to hunt deer at the edge of the forest. The next day, Leif accompanies the knights to the barracks, where he meets Sieg’s knightmaster Gavin Monfort, and watches Markus and Sieg have a practice bout. Flesh and Blood: Part Three - Vacation funtimes come to an end when the three are informed that Gavin has been killed by a pack of predatory animals, who had been responsible for several disappearances in the past few days. Sieg is called back into duty, and since there’s a high possibility of magic being involved as well, Leif volunteers to help, too, as does Markus. Flesh and Blood: Part Four - A puma shows up in the city, marked with russet smears on its face that had been noted in the pack of predators involved in the attacks. It’s strangely docile, and upon examining it more closely, Leif discovers that the marks are actually runes, some of which indicate blood-magic. It turns out the puma is an elf - and not just any elf, but Sieg’s presumed-dead knightmaster, Gavin. Flesh and Blood: Part Five - Leif casts a mindlink spell between Sieg and Gavin, so the former can relay the later’s account of what happened. They discover a blood-mage has been capturing elves and using his magic and animal pelts to turn them into animals, who are then under the blood-mage’s control. While Gavin’s own magic gives him resistance to the mage’s control, it does not prevent him from speaking into Gavin’s mind and trying to urge him back, which Sieg is also able to hear. Leif, Sieg, Markus, and Gavin are sent out to find and stop the blood mage. Ayleth volunteers herself along, much to Leif’s worry. Flesh and Blood: Part Six - The party starts their search, but before finding anything are ambushed by wolves and the blood-mage himself. They manage to hold off the wolves, but the blood-mage casts a spell to create a snake, which bites and poisons Sieg. Flesh and Blood: Part Seven - In a desperate effort to save Sieg’s life, Leif creates a mindlink between himself and Gavin to ensure he doesn't give Sieg an antivenom not safe for elves. Leif gets the venom out, though he and Gavin are accosted by another mental message from the blood-mage partway through. When Sieg recovers, the group decides to go reconvene in a cave near a spring to talk strategry. Flesh and Blood: Part Eight - As holy items hurt the transfigured elves, Leif goes to the spring to attempt blessing the water. Gavin joins him for moral support, and to help test whether the water is indeed holy. It does work, but before there’s much chance to celebrate, the blood-mage sends Gavin a memory or illusion complete with the extra-strong senses of a predatory animal, which drives Leif dangerously close to sensory overload. Gavin is able to prevent him from actually reaching it, but it's a close call. Flesh and Blood: Part Nine - Armed with holy water, the party goes after the blood-mage again - and he finds them first. He regains control of Gavin, and sends him to attack the knights while he and Leif fight each other. A difficult battle is made worse when Leif is distracted, allowing the blood-mage to get close enough for a debilitating attack. Flesh and Blood: Part Ten - Leif is in imminent danger of being killed by the blood mage, but Markus finally manages to break through to Gavin again; the elf distracts the blood-mage, and Leif helps the knights as best he can from teh sidelines while they fight and defeat the bloodmage. The group finds a way to remove the curse from the transfigured elves, and begin by restoring Gavin to human form. Flesh and Blood: Epilogue - After a few days’ rest, Leif, Sieg, and Markus return to some of their vacation plans and sightseeing. On the last day of their trip, Gavin arrives for a personal farewell, and to give Leif and Markus gifts as thanks for their part in the adventure. Markus receives an elven sword, and Leif is given an elven-bred aplomado falcon named Ambre - much to his nerdy, stammering, all-but-squeeing delight. A Wedding to Remember - June 1318/October 1318 - Everyone's most 'shipped 'ship is finally getting married - Oliver Alaric and Zaria Duval! And all the important Kythian nobles are invited and/or obligated to attend the wedding! Ongoing roleplay between Carrie, Elycien, Celestial, Lizzie, PFA, and Tiger, with cameos from Lizica, Shinko, and Maddy. Forgotten But Not Gone - Early 1319 - Sieg has gone missing in a Scorzen forest reputed to be haunted, and it's up to Leif, Anri Hasek, and Gavin Monfort to find him. Fic written by Shinko and Tiger. Dominion Part 4 - June 1319 - Lord Cyril Oberon and his wife, Heather Escalus visit Jade Manor for political business - but the seemingly happy marriage is too happy on Cyril's part, and when suspicions are raised about the legitimacy of Cyril's affections, Leif, who is in Solis to help his sister settle into the city, is summoned to help. Fic written by PFA, Shinko, and Tiger. Dominion Part 5 - June 1319 - Leif and Everett try to get to the bottom of what's wrong with Cyril. Eventually they realize Heather has been giving Cyril love potions through food for around two and a half years, and give him an antidote that wipes the love potion from his system. Heather is, after a brief chase, apprehended and arrested for her crimes. Fic written by PFA, Shinko, and Tiger. Dominion - Epilogue - June 1319 - It's determined that the effects of the love potion on Cyril have had long-term, damaging consequences, and that he'll need personal attention from someone with an understanding of magic, healing, and preferably not somewhere that will remind him of Heather. And, well, would you look at that - Leif is an archmage who studied in a church of healing and lives outside of Corvus. Leif suggests that Cyril can come to Medieville with him for personal treatment and therapy, and Cyril agrees. Fic written by PFA, Shinko, and Tiger. Hannibal Lecture - ~June 1319 - Leif accompanies Everett, and then Jofffery and Reynold Jade, in dealing with an imprisoned but still emotionally-manipulative Heather. Fic written by PFA, Shinko, and Tiger. Stepping Stones - 1319 - Leif takes Cyril Oberon to meet Ambrose Stallion, in the hopes that the Stallion inventor will be able to help Cyril's recovery. Roleplay between PFA, Celestial, and Tiger. The Power of an Archmage - 1320 - Leif is summoned to Solis after an archmage casts a curse on several knights - including Sieg Braham, one of his best friends. The curse reopens old wounds and worse still, prevents them from healing either magically or naturally - the only way to save the knights' lives is to break the curse, before it's too late. Roleplay between Shinko and Tiger. Only Magic: Arc III - A New Leaf - Meltaiman runaways and teenagers Zuzanna and Phyllo Panem are captured in Kyth after a brawl with Courdonian slavers makes them noticeable. Afraid of what a Meltaiman archmage might do in Kyth, the two are put into Leif's custody, much to the archmage's discontent, until it can be assured that Zuzanna is not a threat and is of legal age - the latter of which is several months away. Fic written by Shinko, Carrie, and Tiger. Deceptive Appearances - March 1346 - ? - Alexander Panem, oldest son of Zuzanna and Phyllo, adopts three orphaned girls, one of whom has a very strange reaction to emotions, which she associates with colors. Leif steps in to help with what seem to be a strange case of archmage blocks. Fic written by Shinko, Carrie, and Tiger. Other Dates of Note * Leif and Kirin marry in spring of 1318 Personality When people first meet Leif, their firs timpression is likely going to be "grumpy, standoffish jerk who cares more about birds than people." They wouldn’t be completely wrong; Leif is short-tempered, doesn't like speaking to strangers (especially in diplomatic situations), greatly enjoys snark and sarcasm but doesn't always exercise proper judgement in when he ought to use it, and he likes birds more than he likes a lot of people. Some of this comes from Leif being wary of new people, as they might cause his sensory overload to kick in. He's also fairly used to being disliked or at least thought of as strange, and in some ways he creates a self-fulfilling prophecy by expecting this from the start. However, those who can get past Leif’s waspishness and earn his trust, or his protection, will find themselves with a very different person on their hands; snarky and sarcastic at his own expense as well as those who are comfortable with it, a nerd who will excitedly ramble about birds, magic, and theology whenever the opportunity is presented, steadfastly loyal, protective in times of trouble, concerned and even willing to deal with discomfort from being touched to provide comfort in times of sadness. Unfortunately Leif has a very hard time seeing his own strengths of personality and character, and is very aware of his flaws and failings. While he tries to logic himself out of the worst of these insecurities - after all, one doesn’t have a cluster of close friends and a willing romantic partner if there’s nothing there - it’s often this same cadre of friends he worries about losing who really help him pull through those moments. AUs Bad End Bad End Leif's path away from canon began at the Coronation, where he was somehow incapacitaed during the Bloody Coronation and brought back to triage by Sieg. When the Jades retreated, Leif was taken along with them. Later, he was told that Kirin had been killed in the battle. Leif spent months afterward making forays into Courdonian-conquered parts of Corvus, both to fight the Courdonians and to keep his mind distracted from the grief of losing Kirin. On one of these excursions, however, he discovered a trio of Courdonian soldiers beating a slave - and that slave turned out to be Kirin, alive but terribly abused. Leif drove the Courdonians off, using the Killing Curse to kill one of them, and and took the very broken Stallion back to Solis. Kirin was traumatized both physically and mentally from his enslavement - starved, beaten, whipped, some of his fingers damaged or removed, and psychologically battered to the point where he flinched at touch, avoided eye contact, and had gone completely mute. Leif did his best to help Kirin recover, and his efforts eventually started to pay off in that Kirin began accepting and sometimes even seeking out comfort from Leif. Before the two could get much farther, however, Solis fell under attack by Courdon. The city was eventually overrun, and just before the final wards were breached, Everett ordered Leif to lead Kirin, Ambrose, Jeniver, and Joffery out of the city and make for Destrier. At some point along the journey, Leif lost his archmage abilities. Eventually the party reaches Destrier, and Leif does what he can to advise Isabelle on the Coudonians' magic, as well as strategies the few mages in Bern can use. He also reunites with Sieg there, and the two former Corvids find that they both share the frustration of lost skill (Leif's magic and Sieg's arm, which costs him his knight career), and are the most trusted companion of a Kythian taken into slavery and traumatized during the Bloody Coronation (Rosalie Dylas, in Sieg's case). Recognizing that they have a great deal in common and could both use someone to talk to besides their respective charges, they agree to form a friendship. Features in Kirin, Nightmare1, The Fall of Solis, untitled Kireif snippet, and The Knight and the Archmage1. 1 Not written by Elcie, may or may not be entirely canonical Countryswap Countryswap Leif is a raging, violent psychopath who needs a hefty dose of poison dumped into his next meal. Courdonian Leif still possesses his archmage powers, and still was not tested for blocked powers as a child. Instead of retreating inward and becoming obsessed with birds, magic, and theology as in canon, here Leif took out his frustrations on the Accipiters' slaves. Harming those beneath him became a way to make himself feel better, and the raw power he could wield - especially when angry - gave him a sense of control and strength. Eventually, probably sometime after breaking his blocks (obviously in a different way than Kythian Leif; in fact, Countryswap Leif does not have the marks under his eye or on his arm), he was recruited by House Jade. Leif continues to be a raging, violent psychopath, and a creep, though kept in check by Lord Everett, whom he fears. He is still permitted rather free reign as the magic-handler of Xavier, one of the Jades' slaves. In Countryswap's counterpart to the events of the main Medieval roleplay, Leif finds himself admiring the look of a Stallion slave - Courdonian Kirin. Leif makes a deal with Alain to "borrow" Kirin, a bargain and action that makes decent people want to stab him through the eyes and other pertinent body parts. Tiger's greatest wish for Countryswap is that this version of Leif dies an extremely painful death. From the Ashes When Everett is murdered by an assassin, Joffery, convinced it was the doing of Alain Stallion, tries to order Leif to use the Killing Curse on Ambrose. When Leif refuses, and in fact insists he won't stand by and let Joffery murder innocent people, Joffery uses a token with a paralyzing charm on Leif, takes his wand, and hires the Davorin Silverkin to do the deed instead. Though Leif eventually manages to get warning to Xavier, it isn't in time for the vigilante to save Ambrose. The next night, Leif receives what he believes is a message from Lord Charles, asking him to come out into the city to talk about Joffery. Leif uses bits of his old, exploded wand to escape his room and makes it ot the meeting place. It winds up being a trap, however, and still weakened by the after-effects of the paralysis and without his wand, Leif stands no chance against Alain, who shoots and kills him with the Weapon. Features in parts two and nine. Relationships 'Kirin Mao' Leif fell in love with Kirin very, very quickly, and as far as Leif is concerned, it's no wonder why. Leif adores Kirin, intrigued by and admiring of the qualities and talents he possesses that Leif completely lacks, but finding enough in common between them to be comfortable with one another. Both dislike crowds and invasions of personal space, are somewhat obsessed with a particular animal (dragons in Kirin's case), enjoy quiet intellectual persuits, have compulsive needs to help people, and were completely unaware of the other's very obvious feelings of affection for them. Kirin, however, is rather opposite of Leif in many ways, being polite, patient, and incredibly sweet, where Leif is grumpy, short-tempered, and often rather prickly. Kirin's artistic imagination is also something that impresses Leif, whose own imagination tends to restrict its application to magic. A very unusual part of their relationship, for Leif at least, is how much touch is involved. Some combination of Kirin's calm, polite manner and Leif having time to assure himself that Kirin wouldn't drive him into overload and to consider that he might actually like physical contact with the Stallion left Leif with the ability not only to tolerate touches from Kirin much more so than anyone else, but to actually enjoy the contact. In fact, Leif's conditioned oversensitivity to outside stimuli make those experiences stronger without them actively becoming an overwhelming threat. Naturally, Leif is very protective of his significant other - a good way to earn a lifelong enemy and possibly some serious mortal injuries is to do something to hurt Kirin. 'Xavier Lynn' After finding out how badly House Jade had botched Xavier's adoption, leading him to think he'd been acquired as a slave instead of recruited as a vigilante - Leif promised he would do his best to help the young man's transition into the House, and protect him from the increasingly-worrying actions between the factions, Later, when he realized Xavier might once have been a slave, this expanded to protecting him from the visiting Courdonian slavelords as well. Though the danger of Courdonians was somewhat nullified by legal finangling, Leif continues to want to look out for Xavier and has come to see the Jade more or less as a younger brother. He respects Xavier's sense of justice, his strength of will and ability to protect himself when push comes to shove, as well as his talent for finding friends and allies in just about any group; Leif does know, however, that Xavier still suffers from lapses into a Courdonian slave's mentality with regards to his own worth, and tries to help him readjust his view when he can - often horrified and furious that people have done this to his friend. Sometime after the Coronation, Xavier confesses to Leif that he has magic as well - and that it's been bound and conditioned by the Courdonians. The two work together to undo the conditioning, as well as to train Xavier's gift properly, alongside their current work of diplomacy with the other Medievillian factions on behalf of House Jade. 'Morgaine Braham' The elderly town locksmith might seem like an odd friend for a grumpy, noble-born archmage, and Leif certainly would not have expected her friendship after his failure to save her damaged eye (despite simultaneously having saved her from bleeding to death). Morgaine, however, was willing to forgive Leif for not being able to do impossible magic, and the two have become very close over the years. Their snarky sense of humor compliment each other well, and Leif appreciates having a fellow Corvid to talk to. Underneath the barbs and jokes, the two do genuinely care about each other; while it's usually Morgaine helping divert the archmage's temper, offering him some advice, or comforting him when a genuine problem strikes, when Morgaine is in trouble Leif is adamant about keeping her safe (even if it means being drawn into shenanigans), and while it's rare and very worrying when Morgaine winds up in emotional crisis, Leif will do whatever he can to try and help. Over the years the two become quite close, and though not consciously aware of it, Leif begins to see her as something of a surrogate mother, as she's by far the closest thing to a proper parental figure in his life. 'Sieg Braham' For a half-elf knight and a noble-born archmage, Sieg and Leif have a surprising amount in common; both have snarky senses of humor, the capability to be huge dorks, lonely childhoods, lingering mental traumas, guilt complexes, and the inability to take credit for having saved the other's life during their battle at the Coronation. The two treat this 'argument' as they do many of their interactions - a rapid back-and-forth banter, often laced with teasing comments about their eccentricities (though the two are careful not to cross any lines). Despite any comments he might make about Sieg, however, Leif truly respects both his skill and his compassion, and sympathizes with what the knight has been through. 'Elin Ryer' Though mutually trusted by Xavier, Leif and Elin's relationship starts off very strained and lacking trust, largely due to the faction actions toward one another during the weeks leading up to the Coronation - in particular, Elin's imprisonment and subsequent need to go into hiding, and on Leif's part, the stolen spellbook and the Shadows' generally shady behavior. The two do agree to work together to figure out what kind of magic Elin has and how to control it, however, and eventually the two come to trust and respect one another. 'Everett Jade' Leif will always be immensely grateful to Lord Everett, for being the one person who had answers regarding his magic, and extending a place in his House to Leif despite the then-twenty-year-old's multitude of problems. Everett provided Leif a home that wasn't the Accipiters', incredibly capable magic-teachers who helped Leif get his powers under control, and access to the mews and the raptors inside. While Leif's social problems likely caused Everett more than a little frustration over the years, Leif is very loyal to him and eager to help if he can - though of course, Leif does have his limits and will stand up to Everett if need be. 'Aldrich Finnegan/Galateo Owl Ascension' When Leif first met Aldrich, he knew him only as a sculptor who supposedly had a great many living statues - upon finding out this was true, and that Aldrich had cast an amazing spell that gave everything he carved a life of its own, Leif was absolutely floored. Possibly more so than when it was revealed that Aldrich was actually a legitimate heir to the throne. Though distracted by the living stone gargoyles and birds and horses and talking busts and did I mention birds during his first visit, Leif and Aldrich did have a very interesting conversation about magic and regret and fortune in unlikely places...and in Aldrich's case, a bit of testing to see what sort of person the archmage might be as a potential enemy. Though at the time it was announced, Leif was too close to passing out from his magic-overuse during the Coronation to really process and react to Aldrich's true identity - later, however, it did occur to him that this was a big jump in rank, and likely took quite a bit of getting used to. He does, however, think Aldrich is a good man, and endeavors to help him and Medieville by personally offering his assistance with magical problems. 'Richard and Cateline Accipiter ' By the time Leif came along, his parents were already in over their heads with work, raising five other children and trying to manage all of Raylier. Consequently, Leif didn’t really receive much attention from either of them growing up, and usually when he did, it was because he was in trouble for something. In all honesty, the two parties don’t know each other very well, and with the few interactions they did have being predominantly negative, neither has a particularly good opinion of the other. In particular Leif considers his parents cold, manipulative, and over-obsessed with image, falsley charming around strangers, and forever disapproving. Richard and Cateline considered the symptoms of Leif's blocked as fake and attempts to get out of social functions, as their healer could find nothing physically wrong with Leif. Naturally, Leif resented the resulting lectures, scolding, punishments, and refusal to listen to his protests. Though not very good at reading emotion, it was no secret to Leif that his parents more or less entirely disapproved of him. The most turbulent issue between the three is the decision Richard and Cateline made not to have Leif archmage-tested, and the resulting pain and damage from Leif's blocks. Leif’s refusal to let go of this argument is not so much about the decision itself, but rather what he sees as a complete lack of remorse for the consequences of their choice and refusal to take any blame for it. While Cateline and Richard do regret the decision and feel guilty for what Leif went through, they never quite apologized for it, instead fixating on the fact that it hadn’t been a deliberate action on their part. To Leif this has come across as a statement of a lack of intent equaling a lack of fault, and their determination to never linger on the subject when it comes up does not help that interpretation. In turn, the Accipiters don’t realize what it is Leif wants to hear from them, nor his interpretation of what he has heard, and so see him as refusing to let go of the past in order to manipulate decisions and arguments of theirs that he doesn’t like. It’s highly unlikely either side of the argument will ever entirely understand well enough to communicate what the other needs to hear. Currently Leif and his parents are not in contact with one another, after their visit to Medieville where they claimed to be visiting to reconcile, but instead spent most of the trip trying to talk Leif out of his relationship with Kirin in the hopes of convincing him to marry a woman and have potentially-powerful mage children. Leif’s refusal to give way led to several explosive arguments, the last of which ended with Leif declaring that he didn’t want to see either of his parents (or his eldest brother) again. 'Henry Accipiter ' Leif and his eldest brother get along about as well as the owners of their wand cores would - that is, as well as birds and cats. As a child, Henry never quite understood or believed that Leif’s oversensitivity was a real thing and not just an excuse to be by himself. As a result, Henry considered Leif’s failing in social interactions to come from a lack of effort, and so in this and many other matters - lessons, infractions that got Leif into trouble with his parents, and relationships with his siblings, for instance - took to lecturing and hyper-criticizing Leif. Naturally this didn’t much endear Leif to his older brother, and to this day Leif is quite convinced Henry despises everything about him. This is not precisely accurate, but it’s an easy conclusion to come to. Henry, meanwhile, was always frustrated with Leif’s short temper, his insistence on a great deal of solitude, constant social failings despite what he thought was adequate help, and what he perceived as a deliberate contrariness to their parents and their rules. He was also somewhat hurt by Leif’s rejection of him and the other siblings, but this was not a thing he ever expressed well, if at all. Leif has never been able to stand Henry’s constant need to be talking and socializing and climbing political ladders; he considers it all manipulation and to some degree he is correct. Also a continuing frustration from childhood is that Henry still seems to Leif to follow blindly in the steps of their parents, taking their side more because it’s their side than any logical reasoning Leif can follow. The two also cannot seem to come to a reconciliation on their opinions of Stefan, who for many years did things behind Henry’s back but was polite to Henry himself and so never received any of the hyper-criticism Henry often leveled at the other Accipiter children. The two brothers are very similar in some ways, both physically and personality-wise. The physical similarity is a source of great discomfort for Leif, and some of their weak points personality-wise clash badly. In particular, the two have dangerously short tempers - it takes very little provocation for them to get into an argument, and both can be very brutal and cutting with their words when truly enraged. 'Markus Accipiter ' Though they didn't know each other well as children, Leif and Markus reconnected as adults, attempting to get to know one another better first through regular letters, and eventually through a vacation to Nid'aigle. The vacation wound up not going quite to plan, but both before, during, and after the events, the two were able to bond over a shared sense of humor and mutual teasing, as well as supporting one another on the battlefield. Leif knows Markus feels protective of him, which is something he finds odd but not unpleasantly so. Leif tries to look out for Markus as well, but the knight is very secure in his own abilities and tends to make it difficult for Leif to be his usual guard-hawk self. 'Gavin Monfort ' Leif would have respected Gavin for his relationship as mentor and moral supporter to one of his best friends all on its own; however, Leif has an additional level of personal respect for the elf that goes beyond the things Gavin has done for Sieg. The fact that Gavin not only survived an attack by Courdonians, their subsequent poisoning of him through a magesbane potion, and eventual loss of his magic, but was able to emotionally survive as well, put him in Leif's mind as an incredibly strong person physically and emotionally, something the knight continued to prove while under the effects of a blood mage's curse. During this same adventure, Gavin - despite having a host of his own problems - took time to reassure Leif during a moment of self-doubt, as well as saving Leif from sensory overload, and being killed by a bear, all of which Leif is extremely grateful to the elven knight for. As with most people who think well of him, Leif is perplexed by but appreciative of Gavin's friendliness, and that he thinks of Leif as worthy of going to the trouble and expense of getting an elven raptor as a thank-you gift. It's safe to say that at this point, Leif fully understands why Gavin is such a valued friend of the Brahams. Zuzanna Panem Coming 'Phyllo Panem ' Coming 'Birds' Leif owns a number of birds throughout Medieval and beyond. He is unusually affectionate toward them, or as much as raptors will allow, and even goes so far as calling the birds by petnames - no doubt a very strange sight for anyone familiar with Leif's stiff formality in addressing people. * Ayleth - Female Black-Shouldered Kite - Leif's regular raptor companion during the events of Medieval and one of the birds he's bonded most closely with. Having spent much of her life around magic, she's very clever, capable of recognizing her name, somewhat reading Leif's moods, and even recognizing Leif's boyfriend (her mental concept of Kirin is best translated as "Shinyfeathers", in reference to his shiny gold hat). Appears in the main Medieval roleplay, as well as Birds of a Feather, Flesh and Blood, and Light On Your Feet. *'Hadrian' - Male Black-Shouldered Kite - Very high-strung and sometimes aggressive. Prone to dropping rats on people's desks. He was initially brought to Medieville to be a potential companion for Ayleth, but she will have nothing to do with him until he calms down some. He is mentioned in the main roleplay's epilogue and discussed in Snow on the Market; he makes proper appearances in Birds of a Feather and Only Magic: A New Leaf. *'Forthwind' - Male Snowy Owl - This elderly owl is very calm and surprisingly tame, though not without his quirks and misbehaviors, such as flying off into the wintery wilderness of Medieville. Appears in Snow on the Market . *'Ambre' - Female Aplomado Falcon (elven-bred) - Ambre was given to Leif as a gift for his part in certain events in Flesh and Blood. Bred by the Nid’aigle elves, she is highly-intelligent, trained in a few vocal commands, and long-lived. Having grown up in a much quieter, very different-looking city, Ambre’s transition to Medieville took some time, but she did warm up to Leif, Ayleth, and Kirin during this time. That adjustment aside, she is a very confident and self-assured bird, generally content to sit back and observe. Like all aplomados, Ambre is very agile, and loves chasing a rapidly moving lure if Leif will oblige her. Appears in Flesh and Blood and Deceptive Appearances. Trivia *Leif's difficulties with sensory overload and social impairment, as well as some of his childhood and teenage behavior, are based in part on Asperger's syndrome, a disorder on the high-functioning end of the autism spectrum. Leif exhibits the symptoms of trouble managing sensory input, dislike of physical contact, impariment in social skills (reading faces and emotion, and managing conversation), and intense interest in a specific subject. He also has a small "stim", a repetitive motion used to calm himself; his is running his fingers over repetitive patterns, particularly those of his necklace pendant. *Lunari is actually an albino Phillipine Eagle - the Philipines just sort of don't exist in Avani Category:Medieval characters Category:House Jade Category:Minor Nobles Category:Corvids Category:Player characters Category:Medievillians